"When you listen to music, sometimes you see images with it. When I made this artwork, I knew the music I wanted to hear with it."

RETROX NOVELA is a design experiment turned international multimedia art project meeting at the intersection of music and visual arts with an avid reverence for creative efforts of the past. Started by Memphis-based visual artist Jux Chemist, the collection of work began from iconic visual imagery of old comics rebuilt with new techniques.

"I went to the comic book store for fun and picked up some old comics and redrew them adding in my style- putting in dirt and making the textures drip."

Jux Chemist made a series of images based off of the bold lines and vibrant colors of 50's and 60's comic books. The collection of graphics focuses on pulpy characters with tense or emotional facial expressions. He took these lines and added in signature techniques - blacked-out eyes, randomly colored skin hues, melting skin, against backdrops of graffiti. The aesthetic blends nostalgic vibes with modern flares a respect for the past and an admiration for the future.

The sound that the Chemist sought after was lo-fi, grimy, and equally referential of culturally pivotal work. Jux reached out to Nico Sotireli, the head of nekubi tapes, with the intention to release a tape/art duo. Nico signed onto the idea and they started reaching out to artists

RETROX NOVELA developed into an international team of producers. Their origins include Mexico, Japan, Brasil, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Demark, Spain, Australia Chile, Switzerland, and the USA, but the sound stayed thematic - appreciating old art through a modern lens.

The beats on RETROX NOVELA match the art's lean on bold lines with deep bass, truncated choppy beats, a plethora of record pop-filled detuned samples. The style is brought to life with vibrant jazz cuts and swung 404 beats either or cut to shreds or launched out of the soundscape with an EQ sweep.